Today's Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
This is the last weekend of my 6-week vacation in Ireland. This is also the last weekend I am forced to make just a minimum post for the Sunday puzzle. Given the number of clues and answers, I doubt I will have time to do the look-ups today, but I will try to get back to them if I get some quiet time later. I've been able to keep up with the weekday posts, but the Sunday posts have been a struggle. All will be back to normal when we get back to California on Thursday. Thanks for your patience!

Today's Wiki-est, Amazonian GoogliesAcross
1. "Dad Is Fat" author/comedian Gaffigan JIM
Jim Gaffigan is a standup comedian from Chesterton, Indiana. Gaffigan wrote a book call “Dad is Fat” that was published in 2013. The book is a collection of essays about the raising of children.

17. Tough taskmasters MARTINETS
A martinet is someone who is a hard taskmaster and someone who sticks to the rules. Our use of the term is said to come from Jean Martinet, an Inspector General in the army of Louis XIV of France. Martinet was a noted drill master and disciplinarian.

18. Panache STYLE
Someone exhibiting panache is showing dash and verve, and perhaps has a swagger. “Panache” is a French word used for a plume of feathers, especially in a hat.

19. Powerful military tactic BLITZKRIEG
The blitzkrieg was a tactic used by Germany running up to and during WWII. In the original German blitzkrieg, the army and air-force threw everything into a rapid penetration of enemy lines without stopping to reinforce its flanks. The word "blitz" means "lightning" and "krieg" means "war".

23. Giant Giant OTT
At 5' 9", Mel Ott weighed just 170 lb (I don't think he took steroids!) and yet he was the first National League player to hit over 500 home runs. Sadly, Ott died in a car accident in New Orleans in 1958 when he was only 49 years old.

24. Greenstreet co-star in "The Verdict" (1946) LORRE
The marvelous actor Peter Lorre was born in what is now modern-day Slovakia. Lorre's real name was Laszlo Lowenstein. He started acting in Vienna when he was quite young, only 17 years old. When Hitler came to power, the Jewish Lowenstein headed to Paris and then London, eventually ending up in Hollywood. Lorre found himself typecast as the wicked foreigner in American movies, but I think he sneered and snarled his way to the bank.

Sydney Greenstreet was an English actor, most noted for his appearances in the movies “The Maltese Falcon” and “Casablanca” alongside Humphrey Bogart and Peter Lorre. Greenstreet was a portly gentleman and has been cited as partial inspiration for the Jabba the Hutt character in the “Star Wars” movie “Return of the Jedi”.

26. Letters above WXYZ MNO
The letters MNO are found on the 6 key of a telephone keypad.

27. Team Frisbee game ULTIMATE
Ultimate is a team sport, similar to football or rugby in that the goal is to get a flying disc into an endzone or goal area. The sport used to be called “Ultimate Frisbee”, but the “Frisbee” was dropped as it is a registered trademark.

The Frisbee concept started back in 1938 with a couple who had an upturned cake pan that they were tossing between each other on Santa Monica Beach in California. They were offered 25 cents for the pan on the spot, and as pans could be bought for 5 cents, the pair figured there was a living to be earned.

35. Altar attire ALBS
The alb is the white, neck-to-toe vestment worn by priests, usually with a rope cord around the waist. The term alb comes from "albus", the Latin word for "white".

36. Dog seen with Kvack the duck SNERT
Snert is the clever dog who belongs to Hägar the Horrible in the classic comic strip.

Kvack is the pet duck belonging to Helga in the comic strip “Hägar the Horrible”.

38. Signs of affection XOXO
In the sequence XOX, I think the X represents a kiss, and the O a hug. Hugs and kisses ...

43. Tuba relatives SAXHORNS
The saxhorn is a valved brass instrument that was patented in 1845 by Adolphe Sax, the inventor of the related saxophone. The instrument was actually developed in the 1830s and Sax’s claim to its invention was hotly disputed. The saxhorn was the most common brass instrument used by military bands during the American Civil War.

45. '60s pop group __ Bravos LOS
Los Bravos was a pop band from Madrid, Spain who were active in the mid to late sixties. The band’s most famous recording is “Black is Black” from 1966. Los Bravos were the first Spanish group to make it into the US charts.

46. Eponymous California museum founder GETTY
Jean Paul Getty was famous as an industrialist, but also as a grandfather who had a grandson kidnapped for ransom. John Paul Getty III was 16 years old when he was taken in Rome in 1973. The ransom demand to his father was for $17 million, a sum that he had to ask from the child's grandfather, as he was the one with all the money. Jean Paul Getty refused to pay and 4 months later an envelope was delivered to the family containing a lock of hair and an ear. The grandfather then entered into negotiation with the kidnappers, beat them down to $2 million, and the boy was released. Getty's grandson never really recovered. He got into drugs, and an overdose left him speechless, blind and paralyzed. Sad story …

The J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles is one of the most visited museums in the country. Like many museums in developed countries these days, the Getty has been embroiled in disputes about ownership of artifacts. The curators of the Getty have gone so far as to repatriate some items in recent years, especially to Greece and Italy.

47. Brighton beer, briefly BEV
In England a “bevy” is a beverage, especially a beer.

Brighton is a town (now part of the city called Brighton and Hove) on the south coast of England. Brighton developed as a major seaside tourist destination during the Victorian era after the completion of the London and Brighton Railway in 1841. Large hotels were built on the seafront, as well as famous piers that housed concert halls and other places of entertainment.

48. Mo. in which Caesar was born JUL
The story that Julius Caesar was born via a Caesarean section seems be unfounded. Although such procedures were indeed carried out in Ancient Rome there are no reports of the mother surviving (and Julius Caesar’s mother did raise her child).

51. Caspian feeder URAL
The Ural River rises in the Ural Mountains in Russia and flows for half its length through Russian territory until it crosses the border into Kazakhstan, finally emptying into the Caspian Sea.

The Caspian Sea is a landlocked sea lying between Asia and Europe. By some definitions, the Caspian is the largest lake on the planet. The name “Caspian” comes from the Caspi people who lived to the southwest of the sea in South Caucasus.

53. Clownfish host SEA ANEMONE
The name "anemone" means "daughter of the wind" in Greek, and at one time it was believed that the wind was what actually caused the flower to bloom. The sea anemone is named for the terrestrial plant even though it isn't a plant at all. The sea anemone is a predatory animal found on the ocean floor.

Clownfish are very colorful, attractive-looking fish. They are orange and often have broad strips of white and black on their bodies depending on species. Clownfish spend their lives in a symbiotic relationship with sea anemones.

58. Kakadu National Park site AUSTRALIA
Kakadu National Park is in the north of Australia, just south of the city of Darwin.

61. "The Glass Bead Game" author HESSE
Hermann Hesse was not only a novelist, but also a poet and a painter. Hesse’s best known work is probably his 1927 novel "Steppenwolf".

63. Couple in "Annie" ENS
There are a couple of letters N (ens) in the word “Annie”.

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3. Women's magazine __ Claire MARIE
“Marie Claire” is a women’s magazine that originated in France in 1937, and is now published all over the world.

4. Cardinals' home ARIZONA
The Arizona Cardinals were founded in 1898 as the Chicago Cardinals. That makes the Cardinals the oldest continuously-run professional football team in the whole country.

5. Warm-weather wear TANK TOPS
“Tank top” is another one of those terms that always catches me out, as it has a different meaning on each side of the Atlantic. In the US a tank top is a sleeveless shirt, something we would call a “vest” back in Ireland (and the US “vest” is what we call a “waist coat”). A tank top in Ireland is a sleeveless sweater, which further adds to the confusion. The name “tank top” is derived from “tank suit”, an old name for a woman’s one-piece bathing suit. The use of “tank” for the bathing suit came from “swimming tank”, an obsolete term used in the 1920s for a swimming pool.

6. "I would rather eat a golf ball than see this movie again" writer EBERT
Roger Ebert really panned the 2011 movie “Seven Days in Utopia”. The film blends religion with sport in a drama based on the book “Golf’s Sacred Journey: Seven Days at the Links of Utopia”. Ebert wrote “I would rather eat a golf ball than see this movie again”.

7. Voices in il coro ALTI
In Italian, one might sing with altos (alti) in the choir (il coro).

13. Chick follower? -ADEE
The bird called the chickadee is also known as a tit or titmouse. The name chickadee is imitative of the bird's alarm call "chick-dee dee dee".

15. Morticia's cousin ITT
In the television sitcom "The Addams Family", the family had a frequent visitor called Cousin Itt. Itt is a short man with long hair that runs from his head to the floor. Cousin Itt was played by Italian actor Felix Silla.

Gomez and Morticia (“Tish”) Addams were the parents in “The Addams Family”, a creation of the cartoonist Charles Addams. In the sixties television show, Gomez was played by John Astin and Morticia was played by Carolyn Jones.

26. High point in 1980 news MT ST HELENS
Only two volcanoes in the Cascade Range in the northwest have erupted in the 20th century: Mount St. Helens in 1980 and Mount Lassen in 1915. The last significant eruption of Mount Shasta, a third volcano in the Cascades, was about 200 years ago

28. Droid message TEXT
The Droid is a smartphone from Motorola that is noted for running Google’s Android operating system.

29. "__ Turannos": E.A. Robinson poem about a complex marriage EROS
Edwin Arlington Robinson was an American poet, the winner of three Pulitzer Prizes.

31. "The Producers" bombshell ULLA
The sex kitten married to Leo Bloom in the Mel Brooks musical “The Producers” is called Ulla, although her full name is Ulla Inga tor Hansen Benson Yansen Tallen Hallen Svaden Swanson Bloom!

“The Producers” is a 1968 satirical movie written and directed by Mel Brooks, the first film he ever directed. Brooks adapted the movie into a hugely successful Broadway musical that won a record 12 Tony Awards. The original leads in the stage show, Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick, then appeared in a 2005 movie adaptation of the musical version of the original film!

32. "Halo: Reach" and "Kinect Adventures!" notably XBOX GAMES
Xbox is made by Microsoft (I'm sure the kids have one around here somewhere!) and introduced in 2001. The current version is known as Xbox 360.

40. One on a liquid diet? SOT
Our word "sot" comes from the Old English "sott", meaning a fool. The word "sot" started to be associated with alcohol and not just foolery in the late 1500s.

44. Some NFL linemen RTS
In American football, linemen specialize in playing in the line of scrimmage. RT stands for Right Tackle. That's about all I know, and even that I am unsure about ...

48. Voight's actress daughter JOLIE
Angelina Jolie is a remarkably successful Hollywood actress from Los Angeles, California. Jolie has acting in her blood as her father is actor Jon Voight. Her godparents are actors Jacqueline Bisset and Maximilian Schell.

50. Lists in a regatta LEANS
When a boat “lists”, it leans.

The word "regatta" is Venetian dialect and was originally used to describe boat races among the gondoliers of Venice on the Grand Canal back in the mid-1600s.

52. Sheet in a regatta ROPE
A sheet is a rope that is used to control a sail.

54. "The Clan of the Cave Bear" author AUEL
As Jean Auel prepared her first book in the “Earth’s Children” series, she did a lot of research about the Ice Age, the setting for her stories. She went as far as taking a survival course in cold conditions, learning to build an ice cave and how to make fire, tan leather and knap stone.

55. Framing item MAT
A mat is a border placed around a picture in a frame, a contrasting surround to the picture placed inside the frame.

Today's Wiki-est, Amazonian GoogliesAcross
1. Pooh-pooher of the provincial SNOB
Back in the 1780s, a “snob” was a shoemaker or a shoemaker’s apprentice. By the end of the 18th century the word was being used by students at Cambridge University in England to refer to all local merchants and people of the town. The term evolved to mean one who copies those who are his or her social superior (and not in a good way). From there it wasn't a big leap for “snob” to include anyone who emphasized their superior social standing and not just those who aspired to rank. Nowadays a snob is anyone who looks down on those considered to be of inferior standing.

10. Barclays Center team NETS
The New Jersey Nets NBA team used to play in the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The franchise relocated to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York that opened for business recently. The team's name has now changed to the Brooklyn Nets.

14. Irish pop group family name CORR
The Corrs are a Celtic rock band from Dundalk, Ireland (the town in which I happen to be right now as I write this post). The band is made up of three sisters Andrea, Sharon and Caroline and their brother Jim. In the late nineties, the Corrs held the number one and number two spot on the UK charts simultaneously, something that only the Beatles had ever been able to achieve.

16. Overseas "other" OTRA
In Spanish, the other (otra) is neither this (esta) not that (esa).

20. B-boy link AS IN
B as in BOY …

21. Foofaraw ADO
"Foofaraw" is excessive or flashy ornamentation, or a fuss over something that is unimportant.

22. It's often grated ROMANO
“Romano” is actually an American term, and is used for a selection of hard and salty cheeses that are typically grated. One of these cheeses is the Italian Pecorino Romano, from which we get the more generic term "Romano".

23. Intermediate level MEZZANINE (NINE letters in “mezzanine”)
A mezzanine in a building is a low story between two taller ones. The term came to be used for the lowest balcony in a theater in the 1920s.

27. Skye writing ERSE
There are actually three Erse languages: Irish, Manx (spoken on the Isle of Man) and Scots Gaelic. In their own tongues, these would be Gaeilge (in Ireland), Gaelg (on the Isle of Man) and Gàidhlig (in Scotland).

The Isle of Skye is off the northwest coast of Scotland in the Inner Hebrides. It is the second largest island in the country, and has been linked to the mainland by a road bridge since 1995. I've never been there, but I hear the views are spectacular.

28. Tree sacred to the Druids OAK
Druids were priests in Celtic Europe during the Iron Age.

30. Wheel man? SAJAK
Pat Sajak took over the hosting of "Wheel of Fortune" back in 1983 and has been doing the job ever since. Sajak had a short run as a talk show host in 1989/1990 and used to sub quite often for Larry King and Regis Philbin.

38. Force on Earth, for short ONE G
The force of gravity that we all feel is referred to as “one G”. As gravity is a actually an accelerating force, acceleration is measured relative to that force of gravity. So, if we are sitting in a vehicle that accelerates at 3G, then we are experiencing a force that is three times that which we feel from the gravitational pull of the earth. Zero-G is weightlessness that is experienced when in space, outside the influence of the earth's gravity.

39. "__ of Identity": Conan Doyle story A CASE
“A Case of Identity” is one of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s 56 “Sherlock Holmes” short stories.

The Scottish writer Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is most closely associated with his wonderful character Sherlock Holmes. Doyle also wrote a series of science fiction stories featuring the character Professor Challenger. The first book in which Challenger appears is the famous "The Lost World", a story about prehistoric creatures that are found living in the modern age on an isolated plateau in South America.

41. __ Cakesters OREO
Oreo Cakesters are a soft version of the Oreo cookie, introduced by Nabisco in 2007.

44. Get value out of, in a way SMELT
Metals are found in ore in the form of oxides. In order to get pure metal from the ore, the ore is heated and the metal oxides within are reduced (i.e. the oxygen is removed) in the chemical process known as smelting. The oxygen is extracted by adding a source of carbon or carbon monoxide which uses up the excess oxygen atoms to make carbon dioxide, a waste product of smelting (and of course, a greenhouse gas).

45. Firing org.? NRA
The National Rifle Association (NRA) used the slogan “I’ll give you my gun when you pry it from my cold, dead hands”. These words became quite famous when they were used at an NRA convention in 2000 by Charlton Heston, who was then president of the NRA. Heston ended a speech he made with the words “From my cold, dead hands!” while holding up into the air a replica of a Sharps rifle.

57. 1972 self-titled pop album OLIVIA
Olivia Newton-John is an Australian singer and actress, although she was born in Cambridge, England. Newton-John’s father was an officer in the British Security Services and worked on the Enigma code-breaking project during WWII. Through her mother, Olivia is also the granddaughter of Max Born, the atomic physicist and Nobel Prize winner.

59. Service support gp. USO
The United Service Organization (USO) was founded in 1941 at the request of FDR "to handle the on-leave recreation of the men in the armed forces". A USO tour is undertaken by a troupe of entertainers, many of whom are big-name celebrities. A USO tour usually includes troop locations in combat zones.

61. Creator of Emma Woodhouse JANE AUSTEN (TEN letters in “Jane Austen”)
Jane Austen is a favorite author of mine, and I have been lucky enough to have visited many of the sites in England that have been associated with her life. Favorite of these is a large cottage in the village of Chawton in Hampshire, England. Austen moved to Chawton from Bath, and there wrote and published her most famous novels, including “Sense and Sensibility”, “Pride and Prejudice” and “Mansfield Park”.

I just listened to one of my favorite Jane Austen novels on Audio Book recently, "Emma", the tale of Emma Woodhouse and the wonderful George Knightley. At the end of the tale Emma marries Knightley and her young friend Harriet marries Robert Martin, who had been trying to get Harriet's attention practically from page one of the novel!

65. Sierra __ LEONE
The Republic of Sierra Leone is a country in West Africa, lying on the Atlantic Coast. The capital city of Freetown was originally set up as a colony to house the "Black Poor" of London, England. These people were mainly freed British slaves of Caribbean descent who were living a miserable life in the run-down parts of London. Perhaps to help the impoverished souls, perhaps to rid the streets of "a problem", three ships were chartered in 1787 to transport a group of blacks, with some whites, to a piece of land purchased in Sierra Leone. Those who made the voyage were guaranteed British citizenship and protection. The descendants of these immigrants, and others who made the journey over the next 60 years, make up the ethnic group that's today called the Sierra Leone Creole.

66. Connecticut's State Composer IVES
Charles Ives was one of the great classical composers, probably the first American to be so recognized. Sadly, his work largely went unsung (pun intended!) during his lifetime, and was really only accepted into the performed repertoire after his death in 1954.

68. Game with doubles and triples DARTS
Darts is a wonderful game often played in British and Irish pubs, even over here in America. The scoring in a traditional game of darts is difficult to describe in a sentence or two, but the game of darts called "Round the Clock" is simply hitting the numbers 1 through 20 in sequence.

69. "Sesame Street" roommate BERT
I've always believed that the "Sesame Street" characters Bert and Ernie were named after two roles played in the Christmas classic "It's a Wonderful Life". In the movie, the policeman's name is Bert and his taxi-driving buddy is named Ernie. However, the "Sesame Street" folks have stated that the use of the same names is just a coincidence.

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2. Image on a poster for Eastwood's "Hang 'Em High" NOOSE
"Hang 'Em High" is a Clint Eastwood western. Eastwood plays the lead, and Eastwood’s production company funded the movie.

3. 2006 A.L. home run champ ORTIZ
The Dominican American baseball player David Ortiz has the nickname “Big Papi”. After each home run that Ortiz scores, he looks upwards and points to the sky, a tribute to his mother who died in a car crash in 2002 when she was only 46 years old.

4. Period marked by copper use BRONZE AGE
Ancient societies can be classified by the "three-age system", which depends on the prevalence of materials used to make tools. The three ages are:

- The Stone Age
- The Bronze Age
- The Iron Age

The actual dates defined by each age depend on the society, as the timing of the transition from the use of one material to another varied around the globe.

5. Title word with eleven, twelve or thirteen OCEAN’S
“Ocean’s 11” is a great film from 1960, starring Frank Sinatra as Danny Ocean. The original storyline is updated for the excellent 2001 remake, with George Clooney playing the lead. The 2001 remake (Called “Ocean’s Eleven”) spawned two sequels: “Ocean’s Twelve” in 2004 and “Ocean’s Thirteen” in 2007.

6. Tour toter ROADIE
A "roadie" is someone who loads, unloads and sets up equipment for musicians on tour, on the road.

7. Quiche Lorraine ingredient BACON
The classic dish called quiche is made with eggs ("oeufs" in French). Even though the quiche is inextricably linked to French cuisine, the name "quiche" comes from the German word for cake, "Kuchen". The variant called “quiche lorraine” includes bits of smoked bacon as an ingredient.

9. Title foe of Loki in a 2011 film THOR
The 2011 movie “Thor” is yet another film based on a comic book hero. Even though I won’t be seeing it (I don’t do comics), I must admit it does have an impressive cast. Chris Hemsworth plays Thor, supported by Natalie Portman, Rene Russo and Anthony Hopkins. And to crown it all, the magnificent Kenneth Branagh is the director.

11. Wharton's Frome ETHAN
"Ethan Frome" is a novel by Edith Wharton, first published in 1911.

Edith Wharton was a novelist and designer from New York City. Wharton was a wealthy woman and built her own estate in Lenox, Massachusetts called the Mount. My wife and I had the privilege of touring the Mount a few years ago, and there we saw evidence of what design meant to Wharton.

13. Birthplace of Pythagoras SAMOS
Samos is an island in the eastern Aegean Sea off the coast of Greece. Samos is the birthplace of the famed mathematician Pythagoras, the philosopher Epicurus, and the astronomer Aristarchus of Samos. The latter was the first person known to have proposed that the Earth revolves around the sun.

Pythagoras of Samos is remembered by most these days for his work in mathematics, and for his famous Pythagorean theorem that states that in any right triangle, the square of the hypotenuse is equal to the sum of the squares of the other two sides. Although there is very little of Pythagoras's own work that survives, much has been written by his successors that shows how great his influence was above and beyond mathematics, in the fields of philosophy and religion in particular. In fact, it is believed that Pythagoras coined the word "philosophy", coming from the Greek for "loving wisdom or knowledge". On a "timeline" of famous Greek philosophers, Pythagoras was doing his work over a hundred years before Socrates, who was followed by Plato and then Aristotle.

24. Ship with two zebras on it ARK
Genesis 6:19-20 states that Noah was instructed to take two animals of every kind into the ark. Later, in Genesis 7:2-3 Noah was instructed to take on board "every clean animal by sevens ... male and female, to keep offspring alive on the face of all the earth". Apparently "extras" (7 rather than 2) were needed for ritual sacrifice.

The name "zebra" comes from an old Portuguese word "zevra" meaning "wild ass". Studies of zebra embryos show that zebras are basically black in color, with white stripes that develop with growth. Before this finding, it was believed they were white, with black stripes.

32. Shylock, e.g. JEW
Shylock is a character in William Shakespeare’s “The Merchant of Venice”. Shylock is a moneylender and he gives a loan which is to be secured by “a pound of flesh”. When the money cannot be repaid, Shylock demands his pound of flesh, the collection of which would kill the poor victim of his scheme.

35. Spleen IRE
The spleen has a couple of functions in the human body. It removes old red blood cells, and recycles the iron contained therein. The waste product of this recycling is bile. It also holds a reserve of blood that can be released when necessary (if the body goes into "circulatory shock"). Greek and Roman physicians ascribed to the theory that the body had four basic substances, the so-called four humors. All diseases were caused by these four substances getting out of balance. The four humors were:

Out terms "splenetic" and "venting one’s spleen"are derived from this concept of have the humors out of balance.

36. Rolodex no. TEL
The name Rolodex is short for "rolling index", and applies to a device that was invented back in 1956. Even in today's world that is run by computers, Rolodexes are still popular.

37. __ pants HOT-
Hot-pants were quite the fad. They were introduced in fashion shows in the winter of 1970/71, and became a huge sensation in the summer of '71. By the end of the year, hot pants were "gone".

39. Dept. with a plow on its seal AGR
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) actually dates back to 1862 when it was established by then-president Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln referred to the USDA as the "people's department" as our economy had such a vast agrarian base back then.

40. Spiced tea CHAI
Chai is a drink made from spiced black tea, honey and milk, with "chai" being the Hindi word for "tea". We often called tea "a cup of char" growing up in Ireland, with "char" being our slang word for tea, derived from "chai".

43. Columbus's elusive destination INDIA
Christopher Columbus set off on four voyages of exploration from Spain. The initial intent of the expeditions was to establish an ocean link with the Indian subcontinent, by sailing westward. Columbus reached the Americas instead of India, yet insisted on calling the natives “indios”, the Spanish word for “Indians”.

44. Ella's English counterpart SHE
“Ella” is the Spanish word for “she”.

47. "Star Wars Episode II" soldiers CLONES
“Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones” was the fifth film to be released in the “Star Wars” franchise. It is also the longest movie in the series, with a running time of 2 hours 22 minutes.

48. Schools where boards may be used to measure ability DOJOS
The Japanese word dojo literally means "place of the way". Originally the term applied to training halls that were found in or beside temples. The teaching in a dojo was not limited to the martial arts, but in the Western world we use the dojo as the name for a training facility for judo, karate and the like.

49. Where Davy Crockett died ALAMO
The pioneer Davy Crockett is often referred to as “King of the Wild Frontier”. Crockett was from East Tennessee. After serving in the local militia he entered politics and represented his state in the US House of Representatives from 1827 to 1831. Crockett disapproved of many of the policies of President Andrew Jackson, which led to his defeat in the 1834 election for the House. The defeat prompted Crockett to leave Tennessee for Texas. Famously, he died there in 1836 at the Battle of the Alamo.

53. Seneca, to Nero TUTOR
Seneca the Younger was a playwright as well as a tutor and advisor to the Emperor Nero of Ancient Rome. Although maybe innocent, Seneca was forced to commit suicide by Nero as it was alleged that Seneca participated in a plot to kill the emperor. To kill himself, Seneca cut into a number of veins in order to bleed to death.

55. It's a stunner TASER
Victor Appleton wrote a novel for young adults called "Tom Swift and His Electric Rifle". The company that developed the TASER electroshock weapon named its product as a homage to the novel. The acronym TASER stands for "Thomas A. Swift's Electric Rifle". Interesting, eh?

56. Operation Redwing event, 1956 H-TEST
Operation Redwing was a series of nuclear tests in the South Pacific conducted by the US. Included in the series of tests was the world’s first airdrop of a hydrogen bomb.

58. "__ Lang Syne" AULD
The song "Auld Lang Syne" is a staple at New Year's Eve, the words of which were written by Scottish poet Robbie Burns. The literal translation of “Auld Lang Syne” is “old long since”, but is better translated as “old times”. The sentiment of the song is “for old time’s sake”.

62. Black or Labrador SEA
The Black Sea is in southeastern Europe just south of Ukraine. In the north of the Black Sea is the Crimean Peninsula.

Today's Wiki-est, Amazonian GoogliesAcross
1. Worked a wedding, perhaps DJED
The world's first radio disk jockey was one Ray Newby of Stockton, California who made his debut broadcast in 1909, would you believe? When he was 16 years old and a student, Newby started to play his records on a primitive radio located in the Herrold College of Engineering and Wireless in San Jose. The records played back then were mostly recordings of Enrico Caruso.

16. Like Silas Marner before finding Eppie ALONE
"Silas Marner: The Weaver of Raveloe" is a novel written by George Eliot and first published in 1861. There's an excellent BBC TV version of the tale (shown on PBS) starring Ben Kingsley in the title role, with Patsy Kensit playing Eppie, the young orphaned child that Marner takes under his wing.

19. Cap'ns' underlings BOS’NS
A boatswain works on the deck of a boat. A boatswain is unlicensed, and so is not involved in the navigation or handling of the vessel. He or she has charge of the other unlicensed workers on the deck. Boatswain is pronounced "bosun" and this phonetic spelling is often used interchangeably with "boatswain". The contraction "bos'n" is also very popular.

32. *Words often heard after "Welcome" YOU'VE GOT MAIL (from “mail bag”)
The iconic phrase “You’ve got mail” was first used by AOL in 1989. The greeting was recorded by voice actor Elwood Edwards. Edwards has parlayed his gig with AOL into some other work. He appears in an episode of “The Simpsons” as a doctor who says the line “You’ve got leprosy”. Edwards also worked as a weatherman for a while and got to use the line “You’ve got hail” …

36. Humorous Margaret CHO
Margaret Cho is a very successful stand-up comedian, but she is also a fashion designer with her own line of clothing. Cho also acts, and you might have seen her in the John Travolta/Nicholas Cage movie "Face/Off" in which she played John Travolta's FBI colleague.

46. Old flier SST
The most famous supersonic transport (SST) is the retired Concorde. Concorde was developed and produced under an Anglo-French treaty by France’s Aérospatiale and the UK’s British Aircraft Corporation (BAC).

49. Enlarge, as a blueprint RESCALE
Blueprints are reproductions of technical drawings that are contact prints made on light-sensitive sheets. Blueprints were introduced in the 1800s and the technology available dictated that the drawings were reproduced with white lines on a blue background, hence the name “blue-print”.

53. City on the Somme AMIENS
Amiens is a city in the north of France in the region known as Picardy. Amiens lies on the River Somme, and is the capital city of the Somme department.

60. Scull crew OARS
A scull is a boat used for competitive rowing. The main hull of the boat is often referred to as a shell. Crew members who row the boat can be referred to as “oars”.

61. Names DUBS
Kneel, and the Queen might "dub thee a knight" if you're lucky. "Dub" is a specific term derived from Old English that was used to mean "make a knight". As the knight was also given a knightly name at the same time, "dub" has come to mean "give someone a name".

64. Mule and whitetail DEERS
The mule deer is so called because it has large ears, similar to those of a mule.

The white-tailed deer is very common in North America, especially east of the Rocky Mountains. West of the Rockies, white-tails have largely been replaced by black-tailed deer.

65. Balanchine bend PLIE
The French word for "bent" is "plié". In the ballet move known as a plié, the knees are bent.

George Balanchine was a choreographer of ballet from Saint Petersburg, Russia who relocated to the US in the 1930s. Balanchine co-founded the New York City Ballet in 1948 with Lincoln Kirstein. Balanchine is sometimes referred to as “the father of American ballet”.

67. Peacock's gait STRUT
The female peafowl, the peahen, has very dull plumage compared to the extravagant display on the tail of the peacock. The young of a peacock and peahen is known as a peachick (there's a surprise!).

68. Law firm letterhead abbreviations ESQS
The title "esquire" is of British origin and is used differently today depending on whether one is in the US or the UK. Here in America the term is usually reserved for those practicing the law (both male and female). In the UK, "esquire" is a term of gentle respect reserved for a male who has no other title that one can use. So a mere commoner like me might receive a letter from the bank say, addressed to W. E. Butler Esq.

69. Lines from the heart? EKGS
An EKG measures electrical activity in the heart. Back in my homeland of Ireland, an EKG is known as an ECG (for electrocardiogram). We use the German name in the US, Elektrokardiogramm, giving us EKG. Apparently the abbreviation EKG is preferred as ECG might be confused (if poorly handwritten, I guess) with EEG, the abbreviation for an electroencephalogram.

Down
1. Smile specialist's deg. DDS
Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS)

2. Morning pick-me-up JOE
It seems that no one really knows why we refer to coffee as "joe", but we've been doing so since early in WWII.

5. "__ Millionaire": 2008 Best Picture SLUMDOG
The brilliant film "Slumdog Millionaire" is a screen adaptation of a 2005 novel by Indian author Vikas Swarup. This low-budget movie won eight Oscars in 2008. I reckon it turned a profit ...

6. Column filler COPY
Columns in a newspaper are filled with “copy”, the material that makes up a story or article.

7. Biennial games org. USOC
The United States Olympic Committee (USOC) has a federal charter but it doesn't receive any funds from the US government. As such, it has to engage in fundraising just like any other charitable organization.

22. Old-time actress Negri POLA
Pola Negri was a Polish actress, the first star to be invited from Europe to develop a career in Hollywood. Most of her success came in the silent era, but she was able to make the transition to the talkies. Her off-screen life attracted the attention of the gossip columnists who rejoiced in her affairs with the likes of Charlie Chaplin and Rudolph Valentino.

24. Bugs, for one TOON
Bugs Bunny first said "What's up, Doc?" in the 1940 cartoon short "A Wild Hare", addressing the hunter Elmer Fudd.

33. Hardly a rookie VET
The term “rookie”, used for a raw recruit, first appeared in Rudyard Kipling’s collection of songs and poems called the “Barrack-Room Ballads” originally published in 1892.

34. "Knots Landing" actress __ Park Lincoln LAR
Lar Park Lincoln's real name is Laurie Jill Park. Lincoln’s first big role was playing Linda Fairgate on "Knots Landing", a gig that lasted for five years.

38. Certain November also-ran LAME DUCK
The original usage of the term “lame duck” was on the London Stock Exchange where it referred to a broker who could not honor his debts. The idea was that a lame duck could not keep up with the rest of the flock and so was a target for predators.

43. Trotsky of Russia LEON
Leon Trotsky was a Soviet politician and revolutionary, the founder and first leader of the Red Army as well as one of the first members of the Politburo. Trotsky was ousted and deported in 1929 when he opposed the policies of Joseph Stalin. Trotsky continued to be vocal in opposition to Stalin in Mexico, his place of exile. Stalin had him assassinated there in 1940.

44. Ones resting on a bridge GLASSES
One’s glasses rest on the bridge of one’s nose.

45. Vivaldi motif TEMA
“Tema” is the Italian word for “theme”.

Antonio Vivaldi was one of the great composers of the Baroque period. Vivaldi achieved fame and success within in his own lifetime, notoriety that faded soon after he died. His music has reemerged in recent decades and most people are familiar with at least part of his most famous composition, the violin concerto called “The Four Seasons”. Vivaldi was nicknamed “The Red Priest” because he was indeed a priest, and he had red hair.

47. Parlor instrument SPINET
A spinet is the name given to a smaller version of keyboard instruments, such as the harpsichord, piano or organ. Spinets are still made today, as smaller and cheaper versions of full-size instruments.

52. '60s rockers' jacket style NEHRU
A Nehru jacket is very like a regular suit jacket, except that the collar buttons at the neck. It was originally created in the 1940s in India, and then marketed as the Nehru jacket in the west in the sixties. The name Nehru was lifted from Jawaharlal Nehru, the prime minister of India from 1947 to 1964.

57. Dutch artist Frans HALS
Frans Hals was a painter from the Dutch Golden Age born in Antwerp but who lived and worked in Haarlem. Hals is best known for his portraits, the most famous of which is probably “The Laughing Cavalier”.

58. La Salle of "ER" ERIQ
Eriq La Salle played Dr. Peter Benton on "ER", and is best known in film for his portrayal of Darryl in the 1998 comedy "Coming to America".

63. Mercedes roadsters SLS
The Mercedes-Benz SL was first manufactured in 1954. The "SL" stands for Sport Leicht, or "Sport Light" in English.

Today's Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
My wife and I are heading into the last week of our extended holiday over here in Ireland. We are making an early start this morning as we have to drive the length of the country to Belfast (to see a new "Titanic" exhibition). I only have time to post the essentials today as a result. I will try to get to the look-ups later but I honestly cannot be certain I will have the time. Apologies for the inconvenience.

Gotta run!

Bill

UPDATE: I was in such a hurry this morning that I posted the wrong puzzle. I still haven't gotten to the look-ups, but at least this is the right puzzle now.

Today's Wiki-est, Amazonian GoogliesAcross
1. Praline nut PECAN
A praline is a candy made made out of nuts and sugar syrup. The first pralines were made in France in the 17th century for an industrialist named Marshal du Plessis-Praslin, who gave his name to the confection.

11. Nebraska panhandle hrs. MST
The Nebraska Panhandle is the area to the west of the state. Most of Nebraska is in the Central time zone, with the panhandle falling into the Mountain time zone.

15. Jousting weapon LANCE
Tilting is the most recognized form of jousting. Jousting can involve the use of a number of different weapons, but when lances are used the competition is called "tilting". Jousting took place in a roped-off enclosure that was called the lists, or list field. In later medieval times, some castles and palaces had purpose-built "tiltyards" that were used for jousting.

16. Irish actor Stephen REA
Stephen Rea is an Irish actor, whose most famous role was that of the "retired" IRA man in the brilliant 1992 film "The Crying Game". He also starred in the chilling movie "Stuck", a 2007 film that is based on a true story about a woman who commits a hit and run on a homeless man. The woman leaves the scene of the crime with the victim still "stuck" in her windshield. The woman leaves the man to die in her garage. Chilling, eh? But as I said, a true story ...

21. It's often used as a synonym for "thesaurus" ROGET
Peter Mark Roget was an English lexicographer. Roget was an avid maker of lists, apparently using the routine of list-making to combat depression, a condition he endured for most of his life. He published his famous thesaurus in 1852, with revisions and expansions being made years later by his son, and then in turn by his grandson.

22. Desert largely in Mongolia GOBI
The large desert in Asia called the Gobi lies in northern China and southern Mongolia. The Gobi desert is growing at an alarming rate, particularly towards the south. This “desertification” is caused by increased human activity. The Chinese government is trying to halt the desert’s progress by planting great swaths of new forest, the so called "Green Wall of China".

27. Salinger heroine ESME
J. D. Salinger wrote a short story called "For Esme - with Love and Squalor", originally published in "The New Yorker" in 1950. It is a story about a young English girl called Esme and an American soldier, and is set in WWII.

J. D. Salinger was a very reclusive author, most famous for his novel “Catcher in the Rye”. Salinger fought in WWII after he was drafted into the US Army. He saw action on Utah Beach on D-Day, and in the Battle of the Bulge. He also spent a lot of time interrogating prisoners due to his knowledge of French and German, and he was one of the first Americans to go into a liberated concentration camp. He later spent time in hospital suffering from what was then called combat stress reaction, as he tried to deal with what he saw in the German camps.

28. Battery terminal ANODE
The two terminals of a battery are called the anode and the cathode. Electrons travel from the anode to the cathode creating an electric current.

32. Rock legend Frank ZAPPA
Frank Zappa was an American composer and guitarist, a solo artist as well as the founding member of the rock band Mothers of Invention. You might like to meet his four children: Moon Unit, Dweezil, Ahmet Emuuka Rodan, and Diva Thin Muffin Pigeen.

35. Revolutionary Franklin BEN
The noted polymath Benjamin Franklin was one of the US’s Founding Fathers. Franklin was born into a working class family in Boston in 1706. He went on to invent the lightning rod and bifocals. He became the first US Ambassador to France, the US’s Postmaster General and the Governor of Pennsylvania. He played the violin, the harp and the guitar and composed a string quartet. He was also an accomplished chess player, the first to be known by name in the American colonies. The list of the Benjamin Franklin’s accomplishments seems to be endless …

38. Birth state of two presidents TEXAS
There were only two US president born in Texas: Dwight D. Eisenhower (born in Denison, TX) and Lyndon B. Johnson (born in Stonewall, TX).

President Eisenhower was born in Denison, Texas and given the name David Dwight Eisenhower, but by the time he made it to the White House he was going by the name Dwight D. Eisenhower. Growing up, his family called him Dwight, and when "Ike" enrolled in West Point he himself reversed the order of his given names.

President Lyndon Johnson is one of only four people to have held all four elected federal offices, namely US Representative, US Senator, US Vice-President and US President. As President, Johnson is perhaps best remembered for escalating involvement in the Vietnam War, and for his “Great Society” legislation.

40. Stout of whodunits REX
Rex Stout was an author who is mainly known for his detective fiction featuring his hero Nero Wolfe. One of Stout’s friends was the British author P. G. Wodehouse who wrote the “Jeeves” series of books.

45. Spork point TINE
“Spork” is the more common name for the utensil that is a hybrid between a spoon and a fork. It is less commonly referred to as a "foon".

53. Jekyll's alter ego HYDE
Robert Louis Stevenson's novella "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" was first published in 1886. There are many tales surrounding the writing of the story including one that the author wrote the basic tale in just three to six days, and spent a few weeks simply refining it. Allegedly, Stevenson's use of cocaine stimulated his creative juices during those few days of writing.

54. 2010 Super Bowl MVP BREES
Drew Brees is a quarterback for the New Orleans Saints. On top of his success in the NFL, when he was a youth Brees was an excellent tennis player. In one competition he actually beat a young Andy Roddick who later became the world's number one.

55. Connecticut collegian ELI
Elihu Yale was a wealthy merchant born in Boston in 1649. Yale worked for the British East India Company, and for many years served as governor of a settlement at Madras (now Chennai) in India. After India, Yale took over his father’s estate near Wrexham in Wales. It was while resident in Wrexham that Yale responded to a request for financial support for the Collegiate School of Connecticut in 1701. He sent the school a donation, which was used to erect a new building in New Haven that was named “Yale” in his honor. In 1718, the whole school was renamed to “Yale College”. To this day, students of Yale are nicknamed “Elis”, again honoring Elihu.

56. Press initials UPI
United Press International (UPI) was one of the biggest news agencies in the world, sending out news by wire to the major newspapers. UPI ran into trouble with the change in media formats at the end of the twentieth century and lost many of its clients as the afternoon newspapers shut down due to the advent of television news. UPI, which once employed thousands, still exists but with only a handful of employees.

61. Duma dissents NYETS
"Nyet" is Russian for "no", and “da” is Russian for “yes”.

A Duma is a representative assembly in Russia. The word “dumat” in Russian means “to think, consider”.

62. Singer Tennessee __ Ford ERNIE
Tennessee Ernie Ford was mainly a country singer, whose most famous recording was “Sixteen Tons”. “Sixteen Tons” is a song about life as a coal miner, with the title being a reference to sixteen tons of coal.

63. Provençal possessive SES
“Ses” is the French word for “his”, “her” or “its”, when referring to a group of items.

Provence is a geographical region in France, in the south of the country. The region was once a Roman province called Provincia Romana, and was the first Roman province beyond the Alps. It is this Roman name “Provincia Romana” that gives Provence its name.

Down
1. __ four: small cake PETIT
A “petit four” is a small confection served at the end of a meal, either as a desert or with coffee. The name “petit four” is French for “small oven”.

2. Susan's "All My Children" role ERICA
Susan Lucci is perhaps the most famous actor associated with daytime soap operas, and was the highest paid actor in daytime television. Lucci was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award as Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series an incredible 21 times, for her portrayal of Erica Kane in “All My Children”.

3. Celestial streaker COMET
Comets and asteroids are similar, both being relatively small celestial bodies orbiting the sun. Comets differ from asteroids in that they have a coma or tail, especially when they are close enough to the sun. The coma and tail are temporary fuzzy atmospheres that develop due to the presence of solar radiation.

6. Eccentric senior, affectionately OLD GEEZER
Geezer and coot are two not-so-nice terms for an old man.

8. Singer Baker ANITA
Anita Baker is an R&B and soul singer.

9. Digital scale display, for short LCD
Liquid Crystal Displays (LCDs) are the screens that are found in most laptops today, and in flat panel computer screens and some televisions. LCD monitors basically replaced Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) screens, the old television technology.

11. Hershey's treat in a yellow wrapper MR GOODBAR
The Hershey’s candy bar called Mr. Goodbar has been around since 1925. If you buy one today you’ll read the description “made with chocolate and peanuts”. That wording is very deliberate as when Hershey changed the formula to save money in 2008, the FDA ruled that the cheaper formulation could not be described as “milk chocolate”, hence the single word “chocolate”.

22. Pontiac muscle car GTO
GTO stands for Gran Turismo Omologato.

26. Forensic evidence letters DNA
I've always been fascinated by the fact that the DNA of living things is so very similar across different species. Human DNA is almost exactly the same for every individual (to the degree of 99.9%). However, those small differences are sufficient to distinguish one individual from another, and to determine whether or not individuals are close family relations.

30. George Washington's favorite fruity dessert? CHERRY PIE
The famous story about George Washington cutting down a cherry tree as a child has been shown to be fiction. He supposedly was confronted by his father after taking an axe to a tree and confessed with the words, “I’m sorry father, I cannot tell a lie”. Not true ...

33. Tool for the Tin Woodman AXE
Actor Jack Haley played the Tin Man in "The Wizard of Oz". Haley was the second choice for the role, as it was originally given to Buddy Ebsen (who later played Jed Clampett in "The Beverly Hillbillies"). Ebsen was being "painted up" as the Tin Man when he had an extreme, near-fatal reaction from inhaling the aluminum dust makeup that was being used. When Haley took over, the makeup was changed to a paste, but it was still uncomfortable and caused him to miss the first four days of shooting due to a reaction in his eyes. During filming, Haley must have made good friends with the movie's star, Judy Garland, as years later Jack's son married Judy's daughter, Liza Minnelli.

39. Three, to Angela Merkel DREI
The formidable politician Angela Merkel is the current Chancellor of Germany, the country's head of state. Merkel is the first female German Chancellor and when she chaired the G8 in 2007 she became only the second woman to do so, after the UK’s Margaret Thatcher. Merkel grew up in East Germany under Communist rule.

41. Cartoonist Browne DIK
The cartoonist Dik Brown is most associated with the comic strip “Hägar the Horrible”, which he drew and wrote. Browne also drew the strip “Hi and Lois”.

44. Dating letters BCE
The designations Anno Domini (AD, "year of Our Lord") and Before Christ (BC) are found in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. The dividing point between AD and BC is the year of the conception of Jesus, with AD 1 following 1 BC without a year "0" in between. The AD/BC scheme dates back to AD 525, and gained wide acceptance soon after AD 800. Nowadays a modified version has become popular, with CE (Common/Christian Era) used to replace AD, and BCE (Before the Common/Christian Era) used to replace BC.

47. Tough guys THUGS
The handheld weapon known as a garrote (or garotte) was in particular used by murders and robbers harassing travelers in India. These felons were known locally as "thuggees" (from the Hindi word for "thief"). This gave us our contemporary word "thug", meaning a brute.

48. Knick or Celt NBAER
The New York Knickerbockers team is one of only two founding members of the original National Basketball Association that still plays in its original home city. The other is the Boston Celtics.

The Boston Celtics NBA basketball team were founded just after WWII in 1946. The Celtics won eight league championships in a row from 1958 to 1966. That’s the longest consecutive championship winning streak of any professional sports team in North America.

50. Rimes of country LEANN
LeAnn Rimes has been a country music star since she was 13 years old. In 2008 she disclosed publicly that she suffered from the autoimmune disease psoriasis. She has been active since then in raising money to fight the disease and helping fund cancer research as well. So, not only did Rimes win three Grammy Awards in 1997, she also won a 2009 Humanitarian Award from the Academy of Country Music.

51. Borden mascot ELSIE
Elsie the Cow is the mascot of the Borden Company. Elsie first appeared at the New York World's Fair in 1939, introduced to symbolize the perfect dairy product. Elsie was also given a husband named Elmer the Bull. Elmer eventually moved over to the chemical division of Borden where he gave his name to Elmer's Glue.

57. Big bang cause, and an informal hint to 17-, 23-, 47- and 57-Across TNT (i.e. T ‘n T)
TNT is an abbreviation for trinitrotoluene. Trinitrotoluene was first produced in 1863 by the German chemist Joseph Wilbrand, who developed it for use as a yellow dye. TNT is relatively difficult to detonate so it was on the market as a dye for some years before its more explosive properties were discovered.

Today's Wiki-est, Amazonian GoogliesAcross
1. Where the Stars and Stripes flies, familiarly US OF A
Legend has it that Betsy Ross made the first American flag for General George Washington. However, this story only surfaced during the centennial celebrations of 1876, and although Betsy Ross was indeed one of several flag makers in Philadelphia in the days of George Washington, sadly there’s no definitive evidence that Ross provided that first stars and stripes.

15. "I'm underwhelmed" MEH!
“Meh!” is one of those terms unfamiliar to me outside of crosswords. It is a modern colloquialism meaning “I’m not great, but not bad”.

20. *Vice president's official entrance march HAIL, COLUMBIA (from “hailstorm”)
“Hail, Columbia” is an American patriotic song that served as the unofficial national anthem until “The Star-Spangled Banner” was adopted officially in 1931. “Hail, Columbia” was composed in 1789 for the inauguration of George Washington as president, and was first titled “The President’s March”. Today it is used as the entrance march for the US Vice President.

24. Church-owned Dallas sch. SMU
Southern Methodist University (SMU) is located in University Park, Texas (part of Dallas), and was founded in 1911. In 2008, President George W. Bush agreed to the selection of SMU as the site for his Presidential Library. The building is currently under construction and is expected to open in 2013.

27. Bygone Russian despot TSAR
The term czar (also tsar) is a Slavic word that was first used as a title by Simeon I of Bulgaria in 913 AD. "Czar" is derived from the word "Caesar", which was synonymous with "emperor" at that time.

32. Gabor and Peron EVAS
Eva Gabor was the youngest of the Gabor sisters, all three of whom were celebrated Hollywood actresses and socialites (her siblings were Zsa-Zsa and Magda). The Gabor sisters were born in Budapest and immigrated to the United States separately, with Eva being the first to arrive. Eva broke into movies, but her most famous role was on the TV sitcom "Green Acres" in which she played the lovely character Lisa Douglas opposite Eddie Albert. One of Eva's claims to fame is the unwitting promotion of the game called "Twister", the sales of which were languishing in 1996. In an appearance on "The Tonight Show" she got on all fours and played the game with Johnny Carson. Sales took off immediately, and Twister became a huge hit.

Nowadays, President Juan Perón of Argentina is perhaps less well-known than his second wife, Eva Perón of "Evita" fame. Juan and Eva Perón were overthrown in a military coup in 1955, although Juan Perón was returned to power in 1973 when he served for only nine months before he passed away. Juan was succeeded in office by his third wife, Isabel Perón.

33. Irritating sorts TWITS
"Twit" is a word not used very often here in America. It's a slang term that was quite common in England where is was used for "someone foolish and idiotic".

34. *Hoffman's 1988 title savant RAIN MAN (from “rainstorm”)
“Rain Man” is an entertaining and thought-provoking film released in 1988 starring Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman. It’s all about a self-possessed yuppie (Cruise, appropriate casting!) who discovers he has a brother who is an autistic savant (Hoffman). Hoffman won the Best Actor Oscar for his performance, and “Rain Man” won the Best Picture award.

38. *Stir-fry veggie SNOW PEA (from “snowstorm”)
The snow pea lives up to its name. It actually can continue growing even when it is snowing.

42. *Endurance-building full-speed run WIND SPRINT (from “windstorm”)
Athletes might use a series of sprints to develop breath and endurance. Each one of these sprints is called a “wind sprint”.

45. Zap with a weapon TASE
Victor Appleton wrote a novel for young adults called "Tom Swift and His Electric Rifle". The company that developed the TASER electroshock weapon named its product as a homage to the novel. The acronym TASER stands for "Thomas A. Swift's Electric Rifle". Interesting, eh?

49. '60s militant campus org. SDS
Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) was an activist group in the sixties. The SDS organized the largest student strike in the history of the United States on 26 April 1968, with about a million students staying away from class that day. The “Students for a Democratic Society” name was revived in 2006 with the foundation of a new US-based student organization with left wing beliefs. Today’s SDS was founded by a pair of high school students from Greenwich Village, New York.

50. Sleep phase initials REM
REM is an acronym standing for Rapid Eye Movement sleep. REM sleep takes up 20-25% of the sleeping hours and is the period associated with one's most vivid dreams.

56. Entrance whose top half opens separately DUTCH DOOR
“Dutch door” is the American term for what we call back in Ireland a “half door”, and for what is known in Britain as a “stable door”.

61. Man-mission link ON A
As I write this blog post, I am a “man on a mission” …

63. Thingy GISMO
The word "gizmo" (also “gismo”) was originally slang used by both the US Navy and the Marine Corps, but the exact origin seems unknown. Nowadays, "gizmo" is a general term used for a device or a part when the correct name escapes one (so I use it a lot ...). Oh, and Gizmo is the name of the dog belonging to my son and his fiancee.

65. Smeltery refuse DROSS
When metals are smelted, there is a scum made up of impurities that floats on the surface of the molten metal. This scum is called "dross" and is drawn off and discarded. The term "dross" then came to mean any waste or impure matter.

Down
1. End result UPSHOT
Back in the 1500s, the “up shot” was the final shot in an archery match. We now use the term “upshot” to describe the end result, the conclusion.

2. Indian stringed instruments SITARS
The sitar has been around since the Middle Ages. The sitar is a stringed instrument that is played by plucking, and is used most often in Hindustani classical music. In the West we have been exposed to the instrument largely through the performances of Ravi Shankar and some music by George Harrison of the Beatles, a onetime student of Shankar.

3. New York lake near Syracuse ONEIDA
Oneida Lake is the largest lake lying entirely within the state of New York. Oneida is situated close to New York’s Finger Lakes, but it isn’t one of them. Having said that, some regard Oneida Lake as the “thumb” that goes along with the "fingers".

5. Furry friends' protection org. ASPCA
Unlike in most developed countries, there is no "umbrella" organization in the US with the goal of preventing cruelty to animals. Instead there are independent organizations set up all over the nation using the name SPCA. Having said that, there is an organization called the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) that was originally intended to operate across the country, but really it now focuses its efforts in New York City.

6. Jannings of classic cinema EMIL
Emil Jannings, an actor from Switzerland, was the first person to receive an Oscar. He was the star of the 1928 silent movie called "The Last Command".

8. Cosa Nostra THE MOB
Apparently “Cosa Nostra” is the real name for the Italian Mafia. “Cosa Nostra” translates as “our thing” or “this thing of ours”. The term first became public in the US when the FBI managed to turn some members of the American Mafia. The Italian authorities established that “Cosa Nostra” was also used in Sicily when they penetrated the Sicilian Mafia in the 1980s. The term “mafia” seems to be just a literary invention that has become popular with the public.

9. Indonesian island BALI
Bali is the most important tourist destination in Indonesia and is an island lying east of Java. In recent years, Bali's tourist industry has been badly hit in the aftermath of two terrorist bombings. The first one, in 2002, killed 202 people, mainly foreign tourists in a nightclub.

21. Three-time A.L. batting champ Tony OLIVA
Tony Oliva is a former Major League baseball player who played his whole career for the Minnesota Twins.

24. Hop, __ and jump SKIP
The track and field sport sometimes called the “hop, skip and jump” is more correctly termed the triple jump. The triple jump dates back as an event to the ancient Olympic Games. When the modern Olympics were introduced in 1896, the triple jump consisted of two hops on the same foot followed by a jump. Today’s triple jump consists of a hop, a bound and then a jump.

26. Constellation bear URSA
The constellation called Ursa Major (Latin for "Larger Bear") is often just called the Big Dipper because of its resemblance to a ladle or dipper. Ursa Major also resembles a plow, and that's what we usually call the same constellation back in Ireland: the "plough".

Ursa Minor sits right beside the constellation Draco (Latin for "dragon"). Ursa Minor used to be considered the wing of Draco, and so was once called "Dragon's Wing".

30. Thames school ETON
The world-famous Eton College is just a brisk walk from Windsor Castle, which itself is just outside London. Eton is noted for producing many British leaders including David Cameron who took power in the last UK general election. The list of Old Etonians also includes Princes William and Harry, the Duke of Wellington, George Orwell, and the creator of James Bond, Ian Fleming (as well as 007 himself as described in the Fleming novels).

The River Thames flowing though London is the longest river entirely located in England.

32. CPR pros EMTS
Emergency medical technician (EMT)

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) has for decades involved the simultaneous compression of the chest to pump blood using the heart, and artificial respiration by blowing air into the lungs. Nowadays emergency services are placing more emphasis on heart compressions, and less on artificial respiration.

38. RR stop STN
A station (stn.) is a stop on a railroad (R.R.).

39. __Sweet: aspartame NUTRA-
NutraSweet is a brand name for the artificial sweetener aspartame. Aspartame was discovered by a chemist working for Searle in 1965, but it took 15 years for the company to be granted approval for its sale. I wonder why ...???

41. Beautyrest mattress maker SIMMONS
The Simmons Bedding Company was founded in Kenosha, Wisconsin in 1870 by Zalmon G. Simmons, although back then the factory produced wooden insulators and cheese boxes. Simmons made its first wire-woven mattresses in 1876.

46. Italian cheese ASIAGO
Asiago is a crumbly cheese, named after the region in northeastern Italy from where it originates.

53. Mr. Clean target SCUM
“Mr. Clean” is a brand of household cleaner from Procter & Gamble. “Mr. Clean” is a sold as Maestro Limpio in Mexico, Monsieur Propre in France, and as Monsieur Net in French Canada.

54. "The Cosby Show" son THEO
Malcolm-Jamal Warner was the child actor who played Theo Huxtable on “The Cosby Show”. You can see the grown-up Warner today playing Dr. Alex Reed on the BET sitcom “Reed Between the Lines”.

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About This Blog

This is the simplest of blogs.

I do the Los Angeles Times puzzle online every evening, the night before it is published in the paper. Then, I "Google & Wiki" the references that puzzle me, or that I find of interest. I post my findings, along with the solution, usually before midnight PST.

I've been writing the NYTCrossword.com blog (about the New York Times crossword) since 2009. I finally started this LAXCrossword.com blog in response to many requests over the years to write about the daily LA Times crossword.

About Me

The name's William Ernest Butler, but please call me Bill. I grew up in Ireland, but now live out here in the San Francisco Bay Area. I am retired, from technology businesses that took our family all over the world.

Crosswords and My Dad

I worked on my first crossword puzzle when I was about 6-years-old, sitting on my Dad's knee. He let me "help" him with his puzzle almost every day as I was growing up. Over the years, Dad passed on to me his addiction to crosswords. Now in my early 50s, I work on my Los Angeles Times and New York Times puzzles every day. I'm no longer sitting on my Dad's knee, but I feel that he is there with me, looking over my shoulder.

This blog is dedicated to my Dad, who passed away at the beginning of this month.